Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Improved Ion-Channel Biosensors
An effort is underway to develop improved biosensors of a type based on ion channels in biomimetic membranes. These sensors are microfabricated from silicon and other materials compatible with silicon. As...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Suspended-Patch Antenna With Inverted, EM-Coupled Feed
An improved suspended-patch antenna has been designed to operate at a frequency of about 23 GHz with linear polarization and to be one of four identical antennas in a rectangular array....
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
System Would Predictively Preempt Traffic Lights for Emergency Vehicles
Two electronic communication-and- control systems have been proposed as means of modifying the switching of traffic lights to give priority to emergency vehicles. Both...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Hyperboloid Wire Basket Connector Technology Provides High-Performance Interconnect Solutions
As high-end electronics become more and more pervasive, reliability and the need to minimize failure are top priorities for many manufacturers....
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
CHEM-Based Self-Deploying Spacecraft Radar Antennas
A document proposes self-deploying spacecraft radar antennas based on cold hibernated elastic memory (CHEM) structures. Described in a number of prior NASA Tech Briefs articles, the CHEM concept is one of utilizing open-cell shape-memory-polymer (SMP) foams to make lightweight structures that...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Scalable Multiprocessor for High-Speed Computing in Space
A report discusses the continuing development of a scalable multiprocessor computing system for hard real-time applications aboard a spacecraft. "Hard real-time applications" signifies applications, like real-time radar signal processing, in which the data to be processed are generated at...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Additional Drive Circuitry for Piezoelectric Screw Motors
Modules of additional drive circuitry have been developed to enhance the functionality of a family of commercially available positioning motors (Picomotor™ or equivalent) that provide linear motion controllable, in principle, to within increments ≤30 nm. A motor of this type includes...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Optical Position Encoders for High or Low Temperatures
Optoelectronic pattern-recognition systems (optical encoders)for measuring positions of objects of interest at temperatures well below or well above room temperature are undergoing...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Tunable Optical True-Time Delay Devices Would Exploit EIT
Tunable optical true-time delay devices that would exploit electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) have been proposed. Relative to prior true-time delay devices (for example,...
Briefs: Information Technology
An Architecture for Controlling Multiple Robots
The Control Architecture for Multirobot Outpost (CAMPOUT) is a distributed-control architecture for coordinating the activities of multiple robots. In the CAMPOUT, multiple-agent activities and...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Photodiode-Based, Passive Ultraviolet Dosimeters
Simple, passive instruments have been developed for measuring the exposure of material specimens to vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation from the Sun. Each instrument contains a silicon...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Measuring Radiation Patterns of Reconfigurable Patch Antennas on Wafers
An apparatus and technique have been devised for measuring the radiation pattern of a microwave patch antenna that is one of a number of identical units that have been...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Hydraulic Apparatus for Mechanical Testing of Nuts
The figure depicts an apparatus for mechanical testing of nuts In the original application for which the apparatus was developed, the nuts are of a frangible type designed for use with...
Briefs: Medical
Solution Preserves Nucleic Acids in Body-Fluid Specimens
A solution has been formulated to preserve deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) in specimens of blood, saliva, and other bodily fluids. Specimens of this type are...
Briefs: Medical
Oligodeoxynucleotide Probes for Detecting Intact Cells
A rapid, sensitive test using chemiluminescent oligodeoxynucleotide probes has been developed for detecting, identifying, and enumerating intact cells. The test is intended especially...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Part 2 of a Computational Study of a Drop-Laden Mixing Layer
This second of three reports on a computational study of a mixing layer laden with evaporating liquid drops presents the evaluation of Large Eddy Simulation (LES) models.
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Microwave-Spectral Signatures Would Reveal Concealed Objects
A proposed technique for locating concealed objects (especially small antipersonnel land mines) involves the acquisition and processing of spectral signatures over broad microwave...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Demonstration of a Pyrotechnic Bolt-Retractor System
A paper describes a demonstration of the X-38 bolt-retractor system (BRS) on a spacecraft-simulating apparatus, called the Large Mobility Base, in NASA Flight Robotics Laboratory (FRL). The BRS design was proven safe by testing in NASA Pyrotechnic Shock Facility (PSF) before being demonstrated...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Low-Cutoff, High-Pass Digital Filtering of Neural Signals
The figure depicts the major functional blocks of a system, now undergoing development, for conditioning neural signals acquired by electrodes implanted in a brain. The overall...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Iterative Demodulation and Decoding of Non-Square QAM
It has been shown that a non-square (NS)22n+1-ary (where n is a positive integer) quadrature amplitude modulation [(NS)22n+1-QAM] has inherent memory that can be...
Briefs: Information Technology
Further Improvement in 3DGRAPE
"3DGRAPE/AL:V2" denotes version 2 of the Three - Dimensional Grids About Anything by Poisson's Equation with Upgrades from Ames and Langley computer program. The preceding version, 3DGRAPE/AL, was described in "Improved 3DGRAPE" (ARC-14069) NASA Tech Briefs ,Vol.21, No.5 (May 1997), page 66....
Briefs: Information Technology
Ground Support Software for Spaceborne Instrumentation
ION is a system of ground support software for the ion and neutral mass spectrometer (INMS) instrument aboard the Cassini spacecraft. By incorporating commercial off - the - shelf database, Web server, and Java application components, ION offers considerably more ground - support - service...
Briefs: Information Technology
MER SPICE Interface
MER SPICE Interface is a software module for use in conjunction with the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission and the SPICE software system of the Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility (NAIF) at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. (SPICE is used to acquire, record, and disseminate engineering, navigational, and other...
Briefs: Information Technology
Analyzing Contents of a Computer Cache
The Cache Contents Estimator (CCE) is a computer program that provides information on the contents of level-1 cache of a PowerPC computer. The CCE is configurable to enable simulation of any processor in the PowerPC family. The need for CCE arises because the contents of level-1 caches are not available to...
Briefs: Information Technology
Discrepancy Reporting Management System
Discrepancy Reporting Management System (DRMS) is a computer program designed for use in the stations of NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) to help establish the operational history of equipment items; acquire data on the quality of service provided to DSN customers; enable measurement of service performance;...
Briefs: Information Technology
Simultaneous Product Development Provides a New Approach to Design Collaboration
Product development is becoming increasingly global and as a result, new challenges have emerged, such as coordinating geographically dispersed teams of...
Briefs: Materials
Brazing SiC/SiC Composites to Metals
Experiments have shown that active brazing alloys (ABAs) can be used to join SiC/SiC composite materials to metals, with bond strengths sufficient for some structural applications. The SiC/SiC composite coupons used in the experiments were made from polymer-based SiC fiber preforms that were chemical-vapor-...
Briefs: Materials
Composite-Material Tanks With Chemically Resistant Liners
Lightweight composite-material tanks with chemically resistant liners have been developed for storage of chemically reactive and/or unstable fluids — especially hydrogen peroxide. These tanks are similar, in some respects, to the ones described in — Lightweight...
Briefs: Materials
Improved BN Coatings on SiC Fibers in SiC Matrices
Modifications of BN-based coatings that are used as interfacial layers between the fibers and matrices of SiC-fiber/SiC-matrix composite materials have been investigated to improve the...
Top Stories
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
A Former NASA Mission Manager Reflects on a 'Flawless' Mars Landing
Articles: Nanotechnology
Nano Diamond Battery Provides Universal Applicability
Videos: Motion Control
'LaserFactory' Manufactures Fully Functional Devices & Drones
Podcasts: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Here's an Idea: Hospital Robots
Videos: Aerospace
Watch NASA's Perseverance Rover Land on Mars
INSIDER: Motion Control
Question of the Week
Would You Use the 'LaserFactory?'
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: Electronics & Computers
Contactless Position, Torque, and Force Sensing for Today’s and...
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
How to Achieve Multidisciplinary, Collaborative, Concurrent...
Upcoming Webinars: Materials
Ultra-High Purity Silicone in Aerospace and Defense Product Design
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
A Four-Pillar Approach to Driving Greater Efficiency ePowertrain...
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
Confident TCU Connectivity Through Efficient Functional Testing
Upcoming Webinars: Transportation
Trending Stories
Articles: Electronics & Computers
Modeling & Simulation for Battery Development
Application Briefs: Test & Measurement
Using the IoT for Predictive Maintenance
Technology Leaders: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Biodegradable and Bio-Interfacing Flexible IoT Sensors
Articles: Motion Control
The Modern Industrial Workhorse: PID Controllers
Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
A Guide to Collaborative Robot Safety
NASA Spinoff: Nanotechnology
